Carl W. Kenney II is an award winning columnist and novelist. He is committed to engaging readers into a meaningful discussion related to matters that impact faith and society. He grapples with pondering the impact faith has on public space while seeking to understand how public space both hinders and enhances the walk of faith.

Thursday, May 22, 2014

The Cosby Show raised my kids: will Blackish do the same?

I am the parent of three amazing children.I know, all parents make that claim.Parents are quick to boast about their babies
even when one is enduring a long term stay at a prison far away. We love them, for better and for perceived
worst, and will fight other parents to prove who did the best to raise their progenies.

With that being said, I will put King (your royal
highness), Lenise (sweet baby) and Krista (sugar baby) in the ring with anybody’s
kids.I know, it sounds pathetic to assert
that raising children is a competition.Well, it is in the mind of many.If you don’t believe me, spend some time watching parents lose their
minds while their children participate in the game of your choice.

Lord Jesus.

My reveling in the virtues of my above average
children comes with an admission. I didn’t parent them on my own.Before slapping me with the proverbial dah
(there was a mama helping you with that) it’s critical that I give credit for
the couple that co-parented my kids.I’m
not alone.A bunch of us received
significant help from the parents who came into our homes once a week.

So, I’m thanking publicly, for the first time, Claire
and Heathcliff Huxtable for teaching lessons that made it easier for me to
parent.Many joke that “Cliff” and
Claire were their TV parents.It’s
true.The Cosby Show helped us raise a
generation of children who would have been clueless devoid of their
guidance.

Something has been missing since the Cosby Show left
that once a week spot on NBC from September 20, 1984 until April 30, 1992.Today’s parents don’t have that type of help
to tell it like it tis.

Things have become more complicated since 1992.Black life in America is more convoluted than
before.Cliff and Claire were concerned
with life among middle and upper middle class Americans.The American Dream seemed accessible to all Americans,
and the Huxtable’s helped transform images of blackness for those fixated on
the stereotypes of inner city existence.

As many complained the show wasn’t keeping it real;
black couples showed up to validate the thesis of the show.Not all black people live in the hood.

Other sitcoms have attempted to replicate The Cosby Show.Some come close, but the issues are
different.

Today’s black parents are concerned about things lost
in their quest to obtain the American Dream.There’s talk about the consequences of abandoning the best of black
culture, during the journey to move on up to the East Side.Weezy and George Jefferson dealt with that
from 1975-1982.

Black life in America began to mimic the images on
television.Thank God for that.

What follows Weezy, George, Cliff and Claire exhibiting
the better side of black life in America? What happens to the generation raised
in the finery of things on the other side of the tracks?

They become spoiled, indifferent, pampered brats.Is that the lesson for this generation of
parents?

That’s the context of a Blackish, a new sitcom airing on ABC this fall.Anthony Anderson, Andre, is the patriarch of
the Johnson family.His wife Rainbow is played by Tracee Ellis
Ross, formerly of Girlfriends. Lawrence
Fishburne, who produces the show with Anderson, is Pops (Andre’s father).

It’s a cast of seasoned pros with four kids.The trailer presents a sitcom with the
potential of bringing more laughs than Modern
Family.More than the giggles, ROFL
and LMFAO, the show raises an issue encountered by black parents who move their
children to affluent, mostly-white neighborhoods.Assimilation comes with a price.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNqqjDv6_dU&feature=player_detailpage

How do you remain rooted in black culture?

Black parents understand the struggle.In the South, black parents push their
children to enroll in a Historically College or Universities (HBCU) to get a
feel for the wonders of black culture.Yes, something is lost when all things white take precedent over the pros
of black culture.

What happens when your kids fail to learn about the
wonderful contributions of black people?Is it possible that they will grow up celebrating all things white while
vilifying all things black?

Say it can’t be so, but the danger of assimilation is
the forfeiture of a wonderful culture.

I’m not saying Backish
is this generations Cosby Show.Correction. I’m saying it has the potential
of teaching similar lessons related to black life in America. It may help pave
the way for a broader conversation regarding the burden of assimilation.

I’m looking forward to ROFL.Even more, I’m excited about the
conversations on Facebook after each broadcast.

Did I mention that my children assimilated while
embracing the best of black culture?I
told you they’re the best.

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Carl W. Kenney II

Carl was named the best serious columnist of 2011 by the North Carolina Press Association for his work with the News & Observer's community paper The Durham News and in 2016 by the Missouri Press Association for his columns in the Columbia Missourian. He is a columnist with the News & Observer and Co-Executive Producer of "God of the Oppressed" an upcoming documentary film on black liberation theology. He is a former Adjunct Professor at the University of Missouri - School of Journalism and Adjunct Instructor at Duke University, the Center for Documentary Studies. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He furthered his education at Duke University and attained a Master of Divinity. He was named a Fellow in Pastoral Leadership Development at the Princeton Theological Seminary on May 14, 2005. He is a freelance writer with his commentary appearing in The Washington Post, Religious News Services,The Independent Weekly and The Durham Herald-Sun. Carl is the author of two novels: “Preacha’ Man” and the sequel “Backslide”.
He has led congregations in Missouri and North Carolina